Why You Should Bring Your Realtor to Visit a New Build

If you’re interested in purchasing a new construction home, here is why you should bring your Realtor with you on your first visit.

There are a variety of opportunities in the Phoenix Real Estate Market for both buyers and sellers. If you're a prospective buyer click here for a full home search, or if you're considering placing your home on the market, get a free home value report, right here.

If you’re visiting a new build site, should you take your Realtor with you? The answer is always yes!

The common misconception is that you’re going to get a better deal without a Realtor present because they’ll subtract their commission off of the sale price. This is not true. In actuality, the builder has the Realtor’s commission in a separate marketing budget.

In addition, a Realtor can help you negotiate a price. When you walk in off the street by yourself, the builder is not going to tell you that the price of the home is negotiable. What we can do as Realtors is negotiate you a better deal. Sometimes this means a percentage off of upgrades, and other times it means that we can simply get you a lower purchase price.

A good Realtor can help you negotiate price.

In fact, recently we got one of our clients $46,000 off of the purchase price of a new build in Gilbert, Arizona!

If you have any questions about purchasing a new build or anything else related to Phoenix real estate, reach out to me so that we can sit down and discuss a strategy to get you the best deal on a new home. I look forward to hearing from you soon!

Buying a Home Vs. Renting a Home

Should you buy a home or rent a home right now? Which option is better for you? There are a few things you should know before you decide. 

There are a variety of opportunities in the Phoenix Real Estate Market for both buyers and sellers. If you're a prospective buyer click here for a full home search, or if you're considering placing your home on the market, get a free home value report, right here.

Is it better to buy or rent a home right now? There are a couple of important factors for you to consider when making this decision. 

For example, the current rental market is at an all-time high. Rents are sky-high right now, which means that sometimes it’s cheaper to buy a home than to rent one. 

Rental rates are sky-high right now.

The two benefits of buying a home now are interest rates and lending programs. Interest rates are at an all-time low in our area, and there are some great lending programs available. These lending programs include 0% down loans, 3% down loans, and 3.5% down loans. 

There are also grants available to cover your down payment. There are even programs that pay for your down payment and closing costs!

If you want to get into a home for as little as $500 down, we can help you. Give us a call or send us an email and we can help you make an educated decision. 

Why Is Housing Inventory an Important Figure?

Housing inventory is an important figure. It measures the supply of homes on the market as well as the demand for those homes.

There are a variety of opportunities in the Phoenix Real Estate Market for both buyers and sellers. If you're a prospective buyer click here for a full home search, or if you're considering placing your home on the market, get a free home value report, right here.

What is housing inventory and why is it important to buyers? We are answering those questions and more today. 

Housing inventory is a measure of our market’s supply.

Housing inventory is a measure of our market’s supply. Basically, if we stopped listing homes right now, inventory levels measure how long it would take for all of the homes on the market to sell based on the absorption rate. 

A balanced inventory is around four months. Anything lower than that is a seller’s market while anything above it is a buyer’s market. 

The number of homes on the market is going to affect your value. The more homes that are on the market, the more stagnant the market becomes, and the more competitive you have to be with your pricing.

Low inventory levels, like those in Avondale, lead to competitive markets with a lot of multiple offer situations. Sellers will want to price high and see where the market goes. 

If you’re in a high inventory market like the one in Scottsdale, things will be more stagnant and you’ll have to be more competitive with your pricing when selling.

If you have any questions for us, don’t hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We would love to hear from you.

The Importance of Appraisals in Phoenix Real Estate

Do you know what appraisals are and why they're so important? Appraisals have a significant impact on any home transaction that involves financing.

There are a variety of opportunities in the Phoenix Real Estate Market for both buyers and sellers. If you're a prospective buyer click here for a full home search, or if you're considering placing your home on the market, get a free home value report, right here.

What are appraisals and why are they important? An appraisal is a third-party opinion of the value of a home. There are two different ways the appraisal process works.

First, if you are listing your home, you can order an independent third-party appraisal before listing to get an idea of the value of your home and to double check with your agent.

If you get an appraisal during the selling process, the appraisal comes after the inspection period to make sure the value of the home meets or exceeds what the bank is going to loan for the home purchase.

Appraisals are ordered by the bank lending the money.

Appraisals are ordered by the bank lending the money, and it will randomly go out to many appraisal companies to ensure that there is no collusion or fraud involved. An appraiser will come out to your home, walk around it, and measure it to give you their opinion of price.

Appraisals are so important to the transaction because if the appraisal comes in below the agreed-upon price in the contract, the buyer might not be able to secure the loan, or they may have to bring extra money to the closing.

For sellers, appraisals are important because they can cause them to lose out on a transaction that's 30 to 45 days in. They may have to start all the way over or lower the purchase price.

These are all reasons why it's critical to have a Realtor you trust guide you through the process.

If you have any questions about appraisals or the Phoenix real estate market, give me a call or send me an email. I'd be happy to help.

Don’t Leave Money on the Table When Selling in Phoenix

There are a variety of opportunities in the Phoenix Real Estate Market for both buyers and sellers. If you're a prospective buyer click here for a full home search, or if you're considering placing your home on the market, get a free home value report, right here.

Today I have advice for all of my home sellers in Phoenix. You don’t need to spend thousands and thousands of dollars trying to completely remodel your kitchen or bathroom before you sell your home. There are many smaller, more manageable projects that you can try your hand at.

For example, repainting and installing new carpet are always good bets. Getting your carpet professionally cleaned is also an option. Both of these fixes have high returns, and they both have minimal costs.

Landscaping and curb appeal also matter. You need to form a good impression with a buyer, so be sure to repaint your front door, trim your hedges, mow your lawn, and perhaps plant some new flowers. You need to make buyers curious enough on the outside of your home to want to wander inside.

When a buyer walks through your front door, you’ll want to stage your home in a way that’s appealing and inviting to them. Do your best to clear off your counters and your closets. You would be amazed at how much bigger your home feels. Staged homes often sell for much more money, and my stager can come inside your property to give you some advice on how to showcase your home.

You should also clear out your schedule for the first 21 days of the sale. This time period is crucial, and if you can’t make time to show your home, then it may sit on the market longer and not sell for as much money. Arrange your schedule so that you can be flexible and allow as many showings as possible during this time frame.

If you want more tips on how you can maximize your sale price, please don’t hesitate to ask me. I look forward to speaking with you!

What Do Current Phoenix Market Conditions Mean for You?

There are a variety of opportunities in the Phoenix Real Estate Market for both buyers and sellers. If you're a prospective buyer click here for a full home search, or if you're considering placing your home on the market, get a free home value report, right here.

Today, I want to share a few market statistics with you to give you a good idea of where we're at.

If you're in the East Valley, $350,000 is your key number. Homes listed under this are getting multiple offers and selling quickly.

Maricopa County as a whole is still a pretty balanced market. We’re at 4.1 months of inventory, which means it’s a touch of a buyer’s market. However, in some pockets of the market we’re seeing inventory as low as 1.9 months, which means homes are flying off the shelf in those areas!

If you’re in the West Valley, the magic number for you is $250,000. Any home under that price is in high demand! Homes that fall under that market are selling incredibly fast and for top dollar, so now is the time to list if you’ve been on the fence and have a property in that market range!

If you would like a more detailed analysis of our current market, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’m always available to help you!

How to Improve Your Credit Score in Glendale

There are a variety of opportunities in the Phoenix Real Estate Market for both buyers and sellers. If you're a prospective buyer click here for a full home search, or if you're considering placing your home on the market, get a free home value report, right here.

Have you ever heard about credit services here in Glendale? Randall Mills from The Mills Team at Amerifirst is here to answer some questions about credit services today.

What are credit services? They’re a free credit program for clients. We help clients get credit scores to where they’re actually practical and reasonable.

How does this work? We take a quick application and simulate an interaction with credit bureaus. We know how that audience would react, so we work on how to improve them with you. It’s easy.

If you need credit services, give us a call today! I’ll connect you with Randall. I’m here, too, for your other real estate needs. We’re happy to serve you and seal that deal with your dream home soon.